using unicode in jsp

i have a jsp with the ContentType charset set to UTF-8. When i run the following code: <% String s = "\u3088\u3046"; %> <%=s%> I get two Japanese characters which is want I want. Now i have another string that gets passed to me another way, and the string gets constructed one character at a time <% String s2 = "\\"+"u"+"3"+"0"+"8"+"8"; %> <%=s2%> gives me \u3088 in the browser. I need to have that string interpreted as japanese characters too. I've tried different variations on the String s3 = new String(s2.getBytes("encoding),"encoding"); and cannot get any of them to change what gets output. I've also tried the CharsetDecoder class but with no luck. Is there any way to get the String that is constructed one character at a time to be interpreted as a unicode String and be correctly displayed as a Japanese character in the browser? Thanks Brian